The Claymores' Rebirth
by Salaria-DarkWaters
Summary: Raki is turned into a Claymore by unusual means. What will happen now that Raki himself is a Claymore? Will he Go over the limit soon? Will he survive? Will he become more active in his pursuit of Clare, or will he choose Priscilla, who seems to be regaining her humanity? (Raki's sword symbol is the cover picture for the story). Rated M for future smut.
1. Raki's New Path

As the fused Rafaela and Luciela monster, a bringer of death and destruction, totally devoid of emotion and no ties to life, sent out a second volley of projectiles, a few happened to find their way to the nearby town Raki was staying in. Two crashed into houses, crushing them, one merely hit the ground, becoming lodged into the earth, and the last one surprisingly fell in the well.

Raki saw all this, and wondered what was going on. He could sense something was wrong, and unsheathed his broadsword, and slowly approached the projectile nearest him, the one lodged in the dirt. As he approached it, it quickly transformed into a Yoma. Raki quickly sliced off the left arm and swung around, taking the head clean off. To his astonishment, the creature remained standing, and smaller rods, similar to the creatures' premature form, lodged into him. It hurt severely, but he continued to hack at it, dodging the smaller projectiles until it was in small pieces.

Realizing the dilemma he was in, and the impossible task of eliminating the other Yoma still transforming, he quickly hid in the crushed house, and waited for hours. During that time, he quickly became aware that the rods were trying to turn him into a Yoma. Using only his willpower, thinking of both Clare and Priscilla, he was able to keep the transformation at bay. During that time, he became aware of a strange sense of power from the village, like there were multiple sources. Over the hours, the sense of power from each source faded into nothing. He crawled out, and saw that the Yoma lay lifeless on the ground in various places nearby.

Raki then began to attempt to pull out the rods stuck in a strangely symmetrical pattern out of him. One was lodged in each shoulder, at about a forty five degree angle facing outward. Sadly, to little avail, he was unable to even move them an inch, they were so firmly lodged into him. He fell to his knee, one foot still firmly planted on the ground, his chest heaving and pain radiating throughout his body.

Then, around the corner of the crushed building stepped four men in black, who upon seeing him ran forward, a Claymore walking behind them.

"Hmmm, well it seems we were wrong, if only just. The lone survivor of the town of Liosa. It seems he is holding the transformation at bay with sheer willpower. I saw only one creature was destroyed, cut up into small pieces. The others just ran out of energy and well, died, for lack of a better word. Tell me boy, was it you who killed it? Answer quick, or we'll just end your life now."

Fearing for his life, Raki nodded. "Yes. I killed it, and when I discovered how they didn't stop until they were naught but small chunks, I hid. I just came out of my hiding, and saw you." His voice was strained, though not nearly so much as when he had first been injured.

The man who had spoken to him nodded. Then the claymore, a girl of maybe eighteen when she joined the Organization, stepped forward. "I sense something most peculiar, Rubel. It seems that the boy is producing a Yoki aura. It's very faint, but it's there, and it's his."

Rubel, the one who had spoken to Raki, smiled faintly. "He's not a Yoma though, of that I am most certain. It must be the projectiles from these Yoma-like creatures. If they hit a person, and the person escapes these creatures, it seems they transform into Yoma. Unless they have a strong enough will to resist, in which case this seems to be the result. Very well, we'll take him to the Organizations headquarters. Maybe we will learn something from him there. Boy, you will come with us, or you will surely die here. With our help, we can teach you how to become a Claymore. Sound good to you?"

Raki, not forgetting Rubles' earlier threat on his life, agreed, thinking to use the Organization to become stronger. He was worried, since Clare had mentioned all the male warriors quickly turned into Awakened Beings, but his becoming a Claymore was different than the usual method, and he had a good feeling he was going to be different than all the others. He slowly stood up, feeling stronger than before, and if only just, and followed the men in black and the Claymore. It was a long walk to the Organizations' headquarters...


	2. Raki's Test

Raki stood staring at the swords assembled before him. Not training swords this time, but real warriors' claymore swords. Each one had a unique symbol on it, a symbol that would be the insignia of whoever claimed the sword. Raki had gone through the Claymore training program like all the other female Claymore trainees. It had been long and hard work, but he had powered through it, his new Yoki aura growing stronger every day. It had taken a lot of work to appear weaker than he really was, but it was necessary that the Organization think him an average strength warrior.

And yet here he was, at the graduation exam. He dug through the swords until he found one with an insignia he thought felt... right. It was like two upside down Y's attached, a line going through the stem of the Y's, a line perpendicular to that line going upwards with a half circle, the middle of it resting evenly on the line.

((**A/N**: I will post the link to the insignia in the comments ))

He tested its weight, the balance of it, and found it comfortable and easy to use. He walked up with the other trainee's, standing in a line in front of a bunch of men in black clothing. He took the exact center spot of the line, Rubel right in front of him, the both of them smiling at each other. Raki sheathed his sword, letting it rest comfortably on his back, and waited until the trainee's all picked swords and got in line.

Rubel spoke up, his eyes never leaving Raki's. "Trainees! Today is the graduation examination. You will be split into four teams of five, and will fight each other to the death. Whichever two teams survive, will become Claymores. It's as simple as that. If you want to live... fight. This abandoned city you see all around you, crumbling and dilapidated as it is, will serve as your battle ground. It's as simple as that. Now, you will be matched up into groups, and we will begin."

Raki waited patiently as he was paired up with a Small girl about a foot shorter than he was, with a slim build, overall very dainty-looking. Then came a girl who was quite tall, long arms and long legs. The next three girls were all of an average size and build, nothing outstanding about them at all.

Then a man in black clothing, a different one this time, spoke up. "Now that all twenty of you are grouped up, it is time for the graduation examination to begin. We will leave, and you will have five minutes, no more, no less, to disperse throughout the city. When you hear the horn, you will begin. I don't think I need to remind you what happens if you don't perform at your best..."

He then turned, and walked out of the city, eyeing a stopwatch every now and then. They soon were out of sight, hidden by the buildings.

The small girl that Raki first met in this group took charge immediately. "Alright, you heard him. Let's get moving. We need to move elsewhere in the city, where the territory is less familiar to everyone." She took off, and Raki ran side by side with her, followed closely by the three other girls. The small girl spoke to Raki without turning her head. "Look, I thought the Organization gave up on male warriors long ago, so I'm hoping the reason you are here is that they made a breakthrough, or that you are an exception. Whatever the case, you better not go over your limit, because if you do, I will kill you. You got that?" she asked.

Raki nodded, smiling widely. "Sure. I understand. I assure you, I won't hold it against you, or anyone, if I ever surpass my limit... I'd expect no less from a Claymore." He said, running through the city at a high speed.

The girl nodded, no smile present on her face. "Good. I'd hate to have to kill someone with such a good heart. I know they say we lose our emotions when we have Yoma flesh put into us, but I know that's not true. You have proven that to me many times as I watched you through training."

Raki took on a slightly perplexed look. "You watched me, huh? Interesting... I guess you know me better than anyone else here, isn't that r-... stop!" he said, feeling a large Yoki aura nearby, one he remembered faintly, from the time he became part Yoma, part human. But this aura... "Do you feel it? It's a Yoma... But its Yoki aura is slightly different than normal..."

One of the average girls stepped forward. "How do you know, huh? We've never fought Yoma before. We've never felt a Yoma's Yoki aura. It could be an animal for all we know..."

Raki grinned. "Why do you think they made me like this? I have experience fighting Yoma... and this aura... it's huge..." He said, looking around. He brought his Yoki down to nothing, not releasing it at all, and felt for what was left. As he did so, a young man walked around a corner, and began moving towards them. Raki frowned, identifying the Yoki as coming from the man. "Pretend you don't know there's a Yoma here, but be ready..."

As the man drew closer, they could hear him speaking. "Please help me... they're after me. They want to kill me, those dreadful men in black cloaks... Please... Help..." As he came right up to them, a sly smile split his face. "Heh... you trainees are always so easy to fool..." He then began changing, his flesh rippling and flowing, as he grew in size, becoming a hulking Yoma three times the size of a normal person. He had a human shape, but with Yoma features. He brought his massive hand down towards the girls, and screamed, "Now you are all going to die here in this city!"


	3. Graduation Exam

The group of Claymores leapt quickly out of harm's way. They were lucky Raki had the ability to sense the yoki of this yoma before they were surprised; otherwise they never would have been able to react fast enough. Raki leapt directly backwards, two of the average girls leapt left, and the remaining average girl and the dainty-looking girl leapt right. They had the yoma fairly surrounded, his only escape backwards.

...But he didn't want to escape. He leapt towards the small girl and her partner, and swung his legs through his arms, planted firmly on the ground, gaining momentum as he lashed out with his feet.

Raki, seeing this happen, rushed forwards, leaping hard in front of and past the yoma, slashing at his legs. The monster fell to the ground, skidding three feet before stopping, the dainty girl jumping over the sliding yoma's head. She landed next to Raki, her eyes wide, his sword red.

The yoma was crying out in pain, writhing on the ground, trying to grab his limbs, but Raki grabbed them both, and cut them into multiple pieces so it would be virtually impossible to heal back together in time. He stared at the yoma, an odd feeling running down his back.

"You were right... and you knew the perfect way to take it down, too," said the small girl. "My name is Rafelita. What be your name, warrior?" she asked, looking at him cutely.

And Raki took no time in answering her. "My name is Raki. I just... that was too easy... something just isn't right. It's almost like he let us w-" Fear filled his face as he spun around, only to see it was too late.

The other three trainees were within the clutches of the yoma. Only he was bigger now, and long vine-like extensions were trailing off of his body, even from the severed legs. It was in the leg vines that two of the three trainees were caught, being encased in many of the long appendages until they effectively WERE the yoma's new legs. The last was being brought up to its mouth, screaming and flailing like crazy, trying to free herself. But alas, her stomach was tore open by the yoma, and what guts weren't bitten off began falling to the ground.

Rafelita was stunned, unable to move due to her fear as she saw her teammates get captured or killed. Raki, however, wasn't going to just let her get killed, and smacked her across the face to shock her into action, as he ran towards the monster, bringing his sword from a trailing behind him position up, the tip swinging around to point forward, tucking the blade close to his body, not far from his side and not forward very far. _How could it do all this so fast, and so quietly? What kind of yoma IS this?!_

As he drew near, the girls chewed up body was dropped, falling to the ground with a thud. He continued to refuse to let his yoki aura out, and so could read the creatures movements fairly well. He thrust his sword forward, right before a vine shot at his chest, and his sword glanced it just hard enough and far enough in front of him that it was knocked off course, though not completely. It pierced through the outer layer of flesh on his shoulder, and he cried out as he dropped down, grabbed the girl, and leapt back, dodging more vines until he seemed out of reach. Oddly, the yoma was not moving its body from the one spot, merely attacking with the vines.

Raki noticed this quickly, identifying the yoma as a long range defensive type, seeing as it wasn't right up attacking them... Raki began walking forward, the girl behind him yelling at him to stop. However, he had already been proficient at fighting yoma when he was human, a year ago now, so he had no worries. He kept his yoki aura repressed, watching the yoma's aura, and so saw the vine before it launched. He leapt back, only to find that he crashed into Rafelita, knocking them both backwards to the ground, the vine shooting over them, barely missing their heads. Another one launched towards them, and Raki grabbed his teammate and rolled sideways, and then yanked them both upright and back, out of the range of the vines. He then glared at the girl for but a moment before smiling somewhat forcedly. "Look, I-"

"You idiot! You wanna get yourself killed, walking in all unguarded like that? Think?!" Rafelita yelled at him.

"Look," Raki started. "I've done this before, okay? I told you that. You have no field experience. I do. So let me do what I do!" He then started walking towards the yoma again, a calm look on his face, his shoulder still bleeding, but regenerating rather quickly.

"A defensive type, huh!? Well, I guess I'll have to tear you into pieces so small you can't possibly heal yourseeeeeelllllffff!" The yoma yelled, launching five vines all at Raki. He sidestepped, parried and ducked them, stepping back with each counter and dodge, the vines never stopping their relentless attack. One slipped past his parry, and dug into his shoulder, striking the now hidden embedded projectile from the Massacre in Liosa, causing him to cry out in pain. It seemed that was a sensitive part of him, even though he had thought it was gone, absorbed by his body. He tripped back, and fell, just outside of what he judged the range of the Yoma's vines. He saw the men in black running back into the city, the graduation exam apparently done.

It was at that moment that a vine burst from the ground behind him, launching at him fast at point blank range, going into and through his stomach, his guts. He cried out in pain as he was lifted up off the ground, right up to the yoma's face. "I'm going to enjoy eating you. There hasn't been a trainee yet that they've sent me that I haven't beaten, haven't... feasted on."

Raki, who had let his body go loose as he was lifted, slowly tightened his grip on his sword, and looked the yoma right in the face. "Good. Because that means I'm the first," he said, goading the yoma, who, sure enough, got angry and lunged his mouth full of sharp teeth at Raki, who rapidly rotated his wrist, sending a short burst of yoki into it, causing his sword to swing up so fast, it cut off the yoma's head, leaving Raki to fall with the body quickly to the ground, landing on his feet but falling forward onto his hands and knees, yanking out the vines and healing himself right before the eyes of Rafelita, who had rushed over to help if she could.

"Are you ok? You must be a defensive type, I see, since you're healing so quickly," she said, nodding.

Raki just smiled, letting her babble a little, as the men in black cloaks walked up to Raki, who slowly stood up. Rubel was there, in front. "Rubel, why did y-..." he paused, remembering the words the yoma had said. 'There hasn't been a trainee yet that they've sent me that I haven't beaten'. "I don't know how, but there was a yoma here. A really powerful one. But I just barely managed to take it down..."

"Yes," Rubel said. "Quite Impressive. It seems you and her pass the exam. Congratulations are in order."

"Who else passed then?" Raki asked quickly.

"Well, it seems everyone else killed each other. You two are the only ones left. And we just lost two warriors recently. Rafelita, you will be the new 30. Raki, you will be the new number 16. Serve us well, now, understand?"

"Yes sir." The two of them said in unison, though an odd feeling of suspicion was washing through him. He put it out of his mind, because really, how could the Organization control a yoma? It must have meant another yoma group.

"I assume we keep our swords then?" Rafelita asked.

"Yes. You'll be deployed first thing tomorrow. Get some rest, that's an order. You know the way back." And so they walked the long 2 mile trek back to the headquarters, wondering what the next day would bring...


End file.
